After two years of working hard and “living together” with garbage, the lecturers and officers of the Centre for Construction Environment Technology Research and Development under the Hanoi Architecture University, has successfully manufactured an automatic garbage classifying machine with remote control, which has been praised as a breakthrough in the garbage classification in Vietnam.

Foreigners can make this machine, Vietnamese also can

The major designer of the machine is Lai Minh Chuc, Engineer and Director of the Centre for Construction Environment Technology Research and Development.

The idea of manufacturing a garbage processing machine took shape in his mind in 2008, when Chuc worked as a specialist for the Seraphin Company in Hanoi, a garbage processing company.

Chuc understands well that environmental pollution is the common problem of the whole mankind. He could see with his eyes that hundreds of tons of garbage in Hanoi carried out everyday to the places for treatment. It is really a money and time consuming process to classify and process garbage, while hundreds of workers have to work regularly in a toxic environment.

Chuc also well knows that other countries in the world, like Japan, the US or other developed economies all have the machines which help process garbage. “Why can foreign engineers manufacture the machines, but Vietnamese cannot?” he raised a question for himself.

Finally, Chuc decided that he needs to look for a “made in Vietnam” solution to the problem, and that he and his colleagues need to manufacture a machine to deal with industrial waste and household garbage in the most optimal way.

Chuc used the money he saved for 10 years of working for the researching. However, the small sum of money rapidly had gone out, which made his family’s members worried. Every day, Chuc struggled with the machine. In order to maintain the research work, Chuc had to borrow money from relatives and friends. Sometimes, he had even to seek money from pawn shops, mortgaged with his motorbikes and valuable assets.

Chuc related that the first nine months, since he began designing the machine, was the most difficult time for him. He had only four hours a day to sleep, while most of his time was spent at mechanical engineering workshops, where he had things cut and lathed and then he brought the things home to assemble.

On those days, Chuc said, he looked like a “hungry drug addict” with rumpled hair because he had no time for taking care for himself. However, his great efforts have been well awarded: in September 2010, the first made-in-Vietnam smart automatic garbage classifying machine was completed.

The machine can solve the garbage problem in cities and rural areas

The machine designed by Chuc proves to be very smart in applying automation mechanical engineering technology and digital technology to regulate the process of classifying garbage, which can replace 80-100 workers.

With the machine, the garbage can be classified into six groups that fit the current garbage processing technology. Of course, the machine can work at the accuracy level much higher than that done manually by workers.

According to Chuc, if the machine can be applied in reality and used widely in urban and rural areas, the technology of processing garbage automatically with remote control will help clear out the garbage dumps which cover large areas. The technology also can help turn buried garbage into high quality bio-organic humus which can be used in agriculture.

Especially, the process of classifying and processing garbage is carried out in a closed space which controls the spreading of toxic air and germs to the environment.

The equipment of the new machine are small, light and effectively working, which are integrated into a module with the area of 20 square metres, just 1.5 percent of the area of Seraphin’s separation and filtration line in Son Tay (300 square metres).